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Great Recipes for Kids with Food Allergies

Looking for easy allergen-free snacks and meals that your kids will love? Try these recipes from The Kid-Friendly Food Allergy Cookbook by Leslie Hammond and Lynne Marie Rominger (Fair Winds Press), and check out these tasty brands below.

Crunchy Granola Bars- Gluten Free

Use the crumbs of these bars for a yogurt parfait or chop up the whole batch for a delicious granola cereal. Try adding one cup into your favorite quick bread mix! The trick to making granola bars that stay together is to leave the bars untouched until totally cool. A friend of mine whose children love granola bars suggests leaving these covered on the counter overnight to make it easier to cut.

1/2 cup (125 grams) butter

1/3 cup (70 grams) sugar or honey

1 tablespoon light corn syrup or maple syrup

4 cups (400 grams) oats or buckwheat flakes

1/2 cup (75 grams) raisins (or favorite dried fruit)

1/3 (40 grams) chopped nuts (optional)

1. Lightly coat 8-inch square cake pan with cooking spray.2. 2. Place the butter, sugar and syrup in a pan and cook over low heat, stirring until the mixture is well combined.3. Remove the pan from heat and stir in the oats until coated. Add the fruit and nuts; mix well.4. Turn into pan and press down firmly.5. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes. Cool for 30 minutes and then place in refrigerator. When completely cool, cut with a knife into bars.

Personalized Pizza- Yeast and Gluten Free

This is a kid-pleasing yeast- and gluten-free pizza. Make these in small spring-form pans and have your child create his or her own personalized pizza.

1 1/2 cups (75 grams) instant mashed potatoes

1 cup milk

1/4 cup butter, melted

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1/4 cup (40 grams) Parmesan

1/2 teaspoon sugar, optional

Optional sauce and toppings

1. In a food processor, combine all ingredients except for oil and optional sauce and toppings, and blend until well incorporated. Let dough sit for 10 minutes.2. In a greased spring-form pan, push desired amount of dough on the bottom and halfway up the sides of the pan. You may have thin or thick dough.3. Brush oil over dough and place in a 425 degree F oven for about 30 minutes. Thinner dough might cook faster. If desired, turn the broiler on and crisp the top for an additional 5 minutes. Remove and prepare your sauce and toppings.

Dairy-Free Variation: Use rice milk or water and margarine. Omit Parmesan.

Low-Sugar Variation: Omit sugar.

Buttermilk Pancakes (serves 10)

Traditional Pancakes- Wheat Free

When I surveyed kids about their favorite foods, pancakes ranked high. Enjoy these traditional buttermilk pancakes for breakfast with your wee ones and watch a few cartoons, too.

2 eggs

2 cups (250 grams) rice flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup (60 grams) butter

2 teaspoons vanilla

1. Beat the eggs in a mixer on medium sped until frothy. Add the remaining ingredients. Mix batter until it is smooth, about 1 minute.2. Pour desired amount of batter into a hot greased skillet. When pancake bubbles and is lightly golden on the bottom, flip it over with a wide spatula. Cook until golden on bottom and remove to a plate. Stack until you have used all the batter. These make great pancakes shapes like hearts and letters.

Serve with Mrs. Butterworth's or Log Cabin syrup, which are gluten-free.

Variation: After pouring the batter into the skillet, drop a desired amount of blueberries onto the pancake, cook, flip and serve.

Chocolate Cake- Wheat Free

This cake is moist and chocolaty. This is one of my personal favorites. I've never met anyone who could tell that it is wheat-free.

1/2 cup water

1 cup (175 grams) semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup (250 grams) butter

1 1/2 cups (300 grams) sugar

5 eggs, separated

1 teaspoon powdered vanilla

1/3 cup (40 grams) cocoa powder

2 cups (250 grams) rice flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup buttermilk (or milk)

1. In a small saucepan, bring the water and the chocolate chips to a boil. Remove from heat and continue stirring until you have a smooth syrup.2. In a mixer cream the butter and the sugar. Add the egg yolks and blend. Pour in the chocolate syrup and the vanilla; mix until smooth.3. Add the cocoa, rice flour, baking soda and baking powder. Blend on low speed. Slowly pour in the buttermilk, while mixer is mixing. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides.4. In a clean mixing bowl add the egg whites and whip until you have firm peaks. By hand, slowly incorporate the chocolate mixture into the egg whites.5. Pour batter into 2 greased cake pans lined with parchment. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes, or until firm in the middle. Remove and let cool for 30 minutes before inverting onto a cooling rack and removing the parchment paper. Cool again until cake is at room temperature. Frost with desired frosting.

Dairy-Free Variation: Use canola oil or margarine in place of butter. Use buttermilk substitute or water in place of buttermilk. Use Nestle cocoa powder and Ener-G chocolate chips.